I told my wife we’d never go. I said our kids were fine going to other theme parks. I said it was a waste of money. I said a lot of goofy things. Thankfully my 3 daughters are young and irresistible and so I caved. So, after spending 13 exhaustingly entertaining hours at Disney during our spring break vacation, I officially take back all the things I ever said. Mickey, I’m sorry. Minnie, my bad. You, and your odd animal pals are in my circle of trust.

If you’ve already been to Disney feel free to skip this article. I understand. But if you haven’t been and are considering your first trip to DW, here are some discoveries that turned my skepticism around while strolling through Disney’s Hollywood Studios.

You can bring in your food and drinks.
When someone told me this before our trip, I couldn’t get to google fast enough to see if it were true. But it is. Bring in snacks, food, water, whatever. That’s nothing short of amazing considering many (if not all) theme parks will turn you away in a heartbeat if you try to smuggle in as much as a Cheeto. So bring a backpack and stuff it full of snacks. You’ll feel like a boss. You won’t look like one, but you’ll feel like one.

Every single person there was nice.
Everyone. Like, nice to a fault. “Chick-fil-A worker X10” nice. The security guy who checked our bags as we entered was one of the nicest guys I think I’ve ever met. It was weird.

George Lucas selling Star Wars to Disney was a really, really good idea.
In 2012 the creator of Star Wars sold his company, Lucasfilm, and the rights to his movies to Disney for 4 billion dollars. (Or the amount of a 5 day pass to Magic Kingdom).
Meaning, not only does Disney now produce the new SW motion pictures, but better yet, they incorporate the force out of them into their theme parks.

If you’re into the whole Star Wars thing, you’ll be in galactic heaven. Characters are walking around every where you look. Seriously, you can’t swing a stuffed Wookie around without hitting either a clone trooper or Jawa or something. I don’t know what Disney’s Hollywood Studios was like before they bought SW, but had to have been way more boring.

It was actually worth the money.
Make no mistake, Disney is not cheap. And when you’re taking 4 kids plus a spouse you’re talking 6 people total. (I did the math). It adds up. Especially given that they really don’t give you a price break for young children. But when you consider the broad range of entertainment you get to experience (movies, concerts, performances, rides, characters, live action movie re-enactments) spread out over 13 hours, it really not bad. Plus, when you look back at your time there, you won’t remember the cost. You’ll just remember hanging out with a couple of mice and a Sith Lord as being the greatest day ever.